Concepts for Practice
Course Description
This course provides students with the opportunity to develop a theoretical framework for practice. Students will be introduced to the philosophical values and theoretical understandings that provide a foundation for competent practice as an HCA. The course focuses on concepts of caring and person-centred care; basic human needs and human development; and family, culture, and diversity as they relate to health and healing. Students will also be introduced to a problem-solving model that will be critical to their practice.
Minimum course hours: 70
Learning Outcomes
- Describe how person-centred care recognizes and respects the uniqueness of each individual:
- 1.1 Describe the characteristics and qualities of caring interactions in a variety of contexts.
- 1.2 Explain the importance of respecting the individuality, independence, autonomy, diversity, and dignity of clients and families.
- 1.3 Describe clients as individuals possessing a wealth of experience, knowledge, and wisdom.
- 1.4 Discuss the components of social and community models of care as they relate to person-centred care.
- Discuss basic human needs and common characteristics of human development as these concepts relate to person-centred care:
- 2.1 Describe Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, explaining the importance of each level and the interrelationship of needs.
- 2.2 Discuss the HCA’s role in observing and reporting unmet needs in clients.
- 2.3 Discuss the principles and stages of human development.
- 2.4 Describe common developmental tasks, characteristics, and needs of various age groups across the lifespan.
- 2.5 Describe the common characteristics and changes in the older adult.
- Discuss the role of family, diversity, and life experience in aging, health, and healing:
- 3.1 Discuss changing family structures and diverse family units.
- 3.2 Describe common socio-cultural, religious, environmental, and economic influences on the family.
- 3.3 Discuss the impact of stress on family care providers.
- 3.4 Identify ways care providers may support the family.
- 3.5 Describe how diversity influences an individual’s experience of aging, health, and healing.
- 3.6 Discuss diverse practices in health and healing, including the role of traditional medicines, healing practices, and alternative forms of healing.
- 3.7 Explain the impact of inequity and discrimination on the quality of care.
- 3.8 Define cultural safety and cultural humility.
- 3.9 Describe how to provide culturally safe and sensitive care, including how to consider Indigenous history, cultural practices, traditional healing practices and medicines, and different community norms and protocols.
- Use an informed problem-solving approach to provide care and service:
- 4.1 Describe critical thinking as a caring concept.
- 4.2 Discuss the relationship between critical thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making.
- 4.3 Describe care-planning as a problem-solving process.
- 4.4 Describe the steps of the care-planning and problem-solving process.
- 4.5 Describe the role of the HCA in planning care.
- 4.6 Describe common practices for reporting and recording in various health care settings (complex care, community care, and acute care).
- Contribute to the safety and protection of self and others in a variety of work environments:
- 5.1 Describe individual factors affecting the need for protection and safety (health age, lifestyle, and mental or cognitive health challenges).
- 5.2 Discuss ways of promoting and maintaining safe environments.
- 5.3 Define and describe elements of risk management.
- 5.4 Discuss care planning to promote safety of the client and of the HCA.
- 5.5 Discuss living-at-risk issues.
- 5.6 Identify emergency and critical incidents and describe appropriate steps to take during and after the incident.
Course Content
Characteristics of Caring and Person-Centred Practice
- Caring as a moral ideal: What is caring?
- What distinguishes a caring act from an uncaring act?
- Caring in a health care context.
- Values and beliefs about care and caring.
- Promoting the dignity and worth of self and others.
- Self-building and self-caring as the basis of becoming an effective care provider.
- Caring and power — power positions vs. relational positions with others.
- Independence, dependence, and interdependence.
- Independence and self-esteem.
- Promoting self-determination.
- Promoting quality of life — who decides what it means to each person.
- Social and community models of care.
- Supporting personal preferences and choices.
- Recreation and socialization and how they affect quality of life.
- Preventing isolation and unnecessary dependence.
- Living at risk — what it is and why it is an option — the right to self-determination and choice.
Basic Human Needs
- Hierarchy of needs:
- Physiological
- Safety and security
- Love and belonging
- Self-esteem
- Self-actualization and self-fulfillment
- Interrelationship of needs.
- Factors that affect needs and meeting the needs of clients and families.
- Unique factors that affect needs and meeting the needs in older adults.
- Observing and reporting unmet needs.
Human Development
- Principles and stages of human development.
- Common developmental tasks and characteristics of:
- Infancy
- Toddlerhood
- Preschool period
- School age
- Adolescence
- Young adulthood
- Middle adulthood
- Developmental tasks, characteristics, and changes in the older adult:
- Physical changes
- Psychosocial challenges
- Loss as part of aging
- Diversity in older adults
- Factors influencing aging
Family in Health and Healing
- Family development.
- Diverse family units.
- Changing family structures.
- Socio-cultural, religious, environmental, and economic influences on the family.
- The role of family in health and healing:
- Coping and adapting
- Decision-making
- Understanding the impact of stress on family care providers.
- Families experiencing conflict or other dysfunction.
- Supporting the family.
Diversity
- Relationship between diversity and person-centred care.
- Impact of diversity on aging, and health and healing, including:
- Race and ethnicity.
- Culture.
- Generational differences.
- Gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation.
- Religious and spiritual diversity.
- Diverse practices in health and healing, including the role of traditional medicines, healing practices, and alternative forms of healing.
- Prejudice and discrimination.
- Impact of inequity and discrimination on the quality of care.
- Cultural safety and cultural humility.
- Culturally safe and sensitive care.
Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving
- Critical thinking as a caring concept.
- Relationship between critical thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making.
- Components of effective problem-solving and decision-making.
- Problem-solving in relation to time management.
- Care planning as a problem-solving process.
- Steps in the care-planning and problem-solving process:
- Observing – gathering information (including the client’s unique personal history, achievements, strengths, and preferences).
- Consulting with the client and health care team.
- Establishing priorities.
- Defining the problem or care requirement.
- Identifying the goal for care.
- Creating an action plan.
- Implementing the action plan.
- Evaluating.
- Care-planning process in health care settings, including complex care, community care, and acute care.
- Concepts of client acuity and how these factors influence the HCA’s problem-solving and decision-making regarding care provision and prioritization of care activities.
- Role of HCAs in planning care.
- Reporting and recording.
- Common practices in different health care settings, including complex care, community care, and acute care settings.
- Paper-based documentation (e.g., flow sheets, records, charts).
- Electronic-based documentation.
- Electronic health records (EHRs).
- Tools used for EHRs, including computers, tablets, and mobile devices.
- Common health technology systems in B.C.
- Privacy, confidentiality, and security requirements.
Protection and Safety in Health and Healing
- Factors affecting the need for protection and safety (health, age, lifestyle, and cognitive or mental health challenges).
- Realities and challenges.
- Promoting and maintaining safe environments in various health care settings (complex care, community care, acute care), including:
- Reporting unsafe equipment.
- Maintaining a clutter-free environment.
- Recognizing and reporting vermin and vectors.
- Safety when working alone.
- Roles and parameters of practice in relation to safety.
- Risk management – definitions and approaches.
- Following the plan of care to address safety of the client and of the HCA.
- Living-at-risk issues: respecting the client’s choice to live at risk when an informed choice has been made.
- Emergency and critical incidents:
- Recognizing critical incidents.
- Recognizing situations where critical incident debriefing is warranted.
- Recognizing appropriate actions by the HCA in response to emergency situations (for example, recognizing and responding to cardiac arrest in complex care, acute care, and community care settings).
- Recognizing emergency codes used in acute care settings, specifically codes blue, white, yellow, and red.
- Recognizing the HCA’s role during emergency codes (activating help, assisting other team members as directed, communicating, and collaborating with other team members).